MAN WHO SHOT HOME INVADER GETS JURY TRIAL

CHICAGO TRIBUNE

A 72-year-old man who fatally shot a home invader was granted a jury trial in Gun Court at Chicago Police Headquarters Wednesday.

Judge Lawrence Fox continued the case against Robert Holloway, of 811 E. 46th St., until Jan. 25. Holloway, whose lawyers are arguing that the charges stemming from the Oct. 4 shooting are racially motivated, said the judge`s decision came as a relief.

''I was hoping the case would be dropped, but a jury trial should be fair,'' Holloway said. Though the shooting was ruled justifiable, Holloway was charged with possession of an unregistered weapon, possession of a stolen weapon and using an expired gun card in connection with the shooting death of Ronald Green, 21, a neighbor. Holloway`s attorney, Paul Szigetvari, cited a similar case involving a white gas station attendant who killed a would-be robber but was not charged even though the gun was not registered.

''It`s only because he`s white. It`s a whole different story for this old black man who killed someone who broke into his home,'' asserted another attorney, James Zangrilli.

Holloway brought forms to court Wednesday in an effort to prove that the Chicago Police Department had not allowed him to register his gun because it had been purchased after the city passed an ordinance banning handguns in April, 1983.

Holloway said that as he lay in bed on the night of the shooting, he spotted a man crawling on his bedroom floor. ''I just reached and got my gun from under the pillow and started blasting. I didn`t know who it was. I just knew it was a matter of me or him,'' he said, adding that his apartment was burglarized previously.

He said he donated $200 to Green`s grandmother for the burial. ''I just like to help people. I`ve known that family for a long while,'' he said.